Agriculture, water and land reform minister Calle Schlettwein launched an African Union water investment platform in Cairo, Egypt, on Sunday.
The platform was launched with a project portfolio of approximately N$649 billion (US$37 billion).
The water investment platform is part of the African Union’s Continental Africa Water Investment Programme (AU-AIP).
It will promote bankable projects and facilitate the sustainable financing of Africa’s water sector, Schlettwein said at the launch.
“Water resources are under increasing pressure due to demographic, economic, social and climatic changes, as well as ever-growing global demand for energy, food and water.”
For Africa, there remains an investment gap of approximately N$526 billion (US$30 billion) per year to achieve water security, according to the AU’s High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa, which is co-chaired by Namibia.
The capital requirements for Namibia to ensure bulk water supply up to 2037 stand at just over N$10 billion, said Schlettwein.
An additional investment between N$17 and 25 billion over the next 10 years is required to meet the growing demand in Namibia, he said.
The AU-AIP investment platform is digitally accessible to interested development partners, financiers and investors.
The AU has invited member states to submit priority projects that could form an AU-AIP project pipeline.
In total, 53 projects from 19 countries were submitted.
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